


you look like you've seen a ghost

by rycan_toucan



Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)
Genre: M/M, a little bit of selfish shane who sacrifices science in order to impress his crush what a nerd, every concern is killed by gay kisses, how sappy, pre slash, ryan is there to be the light of his life as always, shane encounters a ghost and ends up disappointed w himself
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-03
Updated: 2017-12-03
Packaged: 2019-02-09 21:51:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12897585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rycan_toucan/pseuds/rycan_toucan
Summary: in which shane encounters a spirit and does't react the way he expected to.





	you look like you've seen a ghost

**Author's Note:**

> this came out of nowhere i have no idea why but have it

being a skeptic, shane didn't believe in the supernatural.  
but that didn't exclude his theoretical nature pondering the possibility of their existence and how it would affect the living.

he's had this conversation with ryan before. the one where they'd set up a fictional (or in ryan's case "eventual") scenario in which they do encounter the undead. 83% of the discussion was based solely on making fun of one another, deciding who would die first and why- all that good stuff. however, the remaining 17% was the fun part as it consisted of in-depth character analysis on both sides.

the conclusion was always pretty similar, though; ryan would be the terrified one and panic in distress, whereas shane'd rely on his calm & collected self and put the other's safety above his own out of reflex. knight in shining armor kinda style.

obviously, they were just meaningless what ifs. none of it was actually going to happen, and shane didn't believe it would, either. people who love physics and math and science are often philosophers in one way or another like that- exploring imaginary situations was only natural.

plus, the idea of being there as somebody who ryan bergara would trust enough to take control of the situation just warmed his heart. the need for ryan to need him. be it reaching for something on the top shelf in the office or just lending him a pencil, he loved when ryan would ask for his help. it made him feel important and present in the other's life.

not that he thinks ryan couldn't do these things without him, no. he was more than capable due to his blind determination (that was just a little too bright and might take away what was left of shane's sight, as well). it meant the world to him when the younger would throw his competitive nature aside and just ask for help knowing it wouldn't be used against him. trust, faith and closeness coming from ryan's words in those moments were singing in harmony deep within the skeptic's chest.

sometimes he'd wish something (paranormal or not) does actually happen so he could slip into his protective mode and be allowed to just take care of ryan. it doesn't have to be dangerous, it'd be preferable if it wasn't- a sudden fever on set would've been fine. just a reason to care a little more openly.

\---

he was doing one of his lone sessions in a supposedly haunted bathroom somewhere right now. another old house labeled as active because it was old.

he doesn't think about the paranormal at times like these, because he knows the kind influence thoughts had over one's perception of reality. take his short smiley companion, for example. his mind is haunted by so many ghosts that they just have to manifest themselves in every little noise the younger would hear.

with that in mind, it came off as a shock when he noticed a fast, shapeless form of sorts move by the corner of his eye. startled, he turned his flashlight on and scanned the room. it looked as if it wasn't a reflection on the walls, he recalled, but rather a three dimensional mass which held onto nothing and passed through the empty space between the tall man and bathroom tiles. it held weight, as if an actual person went by. he could feel the hair on the back of his neck stand up, and the already chilly bathroom seemed to get a lot colder.

"i'm hearing a surprising lack of witty comments mr. madej, are you alright?"

ryan's voice asked from the other side of the door. it sounded teasing and playful but there was a light undertone of nervousness which seemed present whenever they did these shoots. that was expected, his brave partner (yes, brave. he'd fight anyone that wasn't him who said otherwise) was facing his fears for his fellow followers every time they filmed. to ryan, these houses held a heavily eerie atmosphere which his mind made up and- as non-existent as it was- it was frightening to the believer. he was going against his brain every time. shane wondered if he would've been able to do the same.

"i actually wanted to give them time to roast me right back... but i think their bars are cold."

the laughter which followed had successfully released shane from all tension for the time being and helped him relax again. he guessed whatever he 'saw' could be explained, like always, and checked the time. 2 minutes left.

he felt his foot tap against the floor impatiently as he turned to glance around the room once more.

"so," he began, clearing his throat and getting back in character, pretending the uneasiness was gone.  
"i'm beginning to suspect you ghosties aren't real- or at least need to listen to a couple of diss tracks to get the hang of it."

"do you actually think people who lived in the 1880s know what a diss track is?" the familiar voice came.

"listen, if i became a ghost... i wouldn't stop watching the news. i like to know what's happening in the world, y'know? i assume these spirits would, at the very least, know what rap is." the end of that sentence was turned into a small laugh as he heard ryan giggling.

he cocked his head towards a mirror then, and felt his blood run cold at the obvious human-like figure standing next to the sink.  
it's shape seemed to have a near glowing outline as if to prove it wasn't a reflection on the wall or a shadow of multiple things working together to create it. he took a cautious step back, swallowing hard.

the silhouette shifted, a round bubble that was it's head tilted to the side unnaturally and he could hear a whisper go through the air. he wasn't sure if it said anything or if it was even a voice or how a ghost without a proper body could have vocal cords but he felt his stomach tightening from the fear induced adrenaline.

he was breaking out cold sweat at the 'sorta high pitched sorta not' sound. it felt like temperature lacking wind was swirling around the tiny bathroom and making these radio like waves. he was sure the audio recorder wouldn't be able to capture it, it was more of a sensation that a noise. he officially freaked out.

exiting the bathroom prematurely caused the other ghost hunter to jump in horror.

"oh, you dick-" he was about to say, thinking shane did it on purpose for a good ol' scare but...once he noticed the lack of color in the man's cheeks and his slightly dilated eyes his tone changed.

"jesus christ dude, are you okay??"

he sounded like he was panicking, an arm reaching forward to wrap around shane's shoulders for comfort. it was warm. the taller met his gaze and the younger understood, grabbing their bag and guiding his partner through the bedroom door and living room until they were outside breathing fresh air.

"are you feeling lightheaded?"

a touch on his forehead

"are you sick? maybe you ate something bad- god, you're freezing."

ryans palm lowered and took hold of shane's face- the other hand joining in.

"you look like you've seen a ghost."

shane had no idea what to do. his head was spinning with questions- he wasn't scared of the spirit itself but of what it could do. science knew nothing about ghosts. was this one able to kill him? was it ever human? is it even something people labeled as a ghost? there was so much fear injected in the unknown and shane realized how vulnerable he is once he's presented with such.

it took a lot of courage to face these things, what if it had stricken? there's not a definitive method you could follow to save your life from an unknown attacker. it wasn't a serial killer who you could physically fight off or an animal you could deal with- what were this thing's weaknesses? did it have any? how can it take up actual space without a biological body?

ryan, though, he understood ryan. the chocolate brown eyes which were filled with so much concern at the moment made sense. his puzzled expression even more so.

he loved the warmth flowing into his body through ryan's palms, heating him up. he loved how he didn't suggest ghosts to be the reason for shane's odd behavior right away. the younger was so thoughtful and pleasant- he trusted their analysis and had a mental image of what a ghost-seeing shane would be like. he knew this wasn't it.

shane lifted his arms to grip at the hands resting on his face, looking down at ryan with a genuine smirk. he was starting to think once again.

he thought about how this could've been the most compelling evidence so far, had he stayed in there and brought out a spirit box or something. he realized that's probably what ryan would've done.

some weird feeling of sudden shame crawled it's way into the taller's head and he felt like he could've handled it differently. maybe now he can look up a way or two to deal with these things and protect ryan the way he wanted to next time this happens. and it will happen, because that was real. real things happen.

"a ghost, sure."

he said mockingly, he's not going to admit to what he saw- not yet. there was no reason to alarm the younger any more. there was no reason to feel afraid next to him, either.

although he rolled his eyes, ryan seemed glad to have his sarcastic friend back; and relaxed into a sigh.

"you really scared me, man. what happened to you?"

"you're amazing, you know that?"

"i- what? uhm- thank you? that doesn't answer my question though why-"

the believers muttering was silenced by a pair of lips pressing against his own in a small awkwardly-positioned peck. it wasn't really a kiss but it was close- aiming to be a shutting up method more than a make out session.

shane could feel the other's body vibrate with bubbling laughter at how weird their first kiss was. the giant considered getting offended. they pulled back wheezing.

"what do you say we call it quits? this place ain't haunted and there are a couple of positions i wish to kiss you in." he said instead.

he felt ryan's elbow hit him in the ribs in embarrassment, playfully, but he didn't say no. in fact, he grabbed a fistful of shane's dark collar and pulled him down for a proper, kinda irritated, kiss which left them both breathless.

"sure thing, as long as it's not only kissing."

shane made his promise clear as day with the inhuman speed he used to drag the younger man into their car and drive off, leaving the definitely haunted house and it's very real spirit(s) behind. 

that thing could've presented itself to ryan and the no-longer-skeptic was sure he'd never forgive himself if he acted the way he just did- but now wasn't the time to think about that. he's fine. they're going to be fine just the way they are and one day when they inevitably run into something like this together, well,

shane is going to be ready.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading! feedback is always good my boys
> 
> also you can follow me on tumblr @ rycan-toucan and help me figure out why none of my promos show up in search


End file.
